Tuesday Tuneup- #27
Defining your "North Star"
Happy Tuesday, Everyone!
What a week! I just got back from eight glorious days in Alaska (Beautiful!) and shout out to Royal Caribbean for being a wonderful host. This is my fourth cruise (my first with my 4 children) and it never ceases to amaze me how efficient these ships run. The very fact that 4,000 people can spend a week on a ship…… spending thousands of dollars on eating, drinking, shopping, gambling, etc….. supported by 1,500 workers…. and leave the passengers feeling like they had an amazing experience… It is honestly NOTHING SHORT OF AMAZING. When you add in the fact that they do it week in and week out with nothing more than a couple hours of turn over…. well….. it’s pretty unreal.
And that brings us to this week's topic of defining your “North Star” as a company. You see, the cruise lines have it figured out. Their “North Star” is my happiness and well being. Yes, they are there to make money…. but you don’t feel it as a customer. Everything they do, from even before booking your vacation, to the time you walk off the boat, is 100% based around the “North Star” of “Make the customer happy at all times and keep them safe”. They, along with all great companies, have mastered it and in this weeks edition I’ll show you how to master it for yourself as well.
The Concept of a "North Star" in Sales
A “North Star” is that one primary objective or guiding principle that informs all decisions, keeps your team aligned, and ensures consistency across your sales process. It serves as a focal point that gives your team clarity on what success looks like, even when confronted with shifting priorities, tight deadlines, or unexpected challenges.
For example, if your “North Star” is customer satisfaction, then all your processes—from lead generation to closing—must be optimized to enhance customer experience. Your sales team would prioritize understanding customer needs and building long-term relationships over short-term gains. On the other hand, if revenue growth is your primary focus, you may emphasize aggressive closing strategies, quicker sales cycles, and high-volume lead generation.
Why Defining a “North Star” is Crucial in Sales Project Management
Alignment Across Teams and Processes
Sales is rarely a one-person job. It involves multiple stakeholders: sales reps, managers, support teams, marketing, and even finance. Each department has its objectives and KPIs (key performance indicator) but if these aren’t aligned toward a common goal, friction can arise. By establishing a clear North Star, you ensure that every department, process, and role is driving toward the same destination. This alignment minimizes inefficiencies and reduces miscommunication, creating a smoother, more cohesive sales process.
Consistency in Decision-Making
In any sales project, decision-making is constant. From how to prioritize leads to how resources are allocated, your team needs a consistent framework for making decisions quickly and effectively. Your North Star becomes that framework. When everyone understands the guiding objective, decisions are less subjective and more aligned with long-term goals. This consistency also empowers your team to act autonomously within the boundaries of the project, knowing that their decisions are contributing to the overarching goal.
Focus Amid Complexity
Sales processes are becoming increasingly complex, with multiple touchpoints, varied customer needs, and diverse sales channels. It’s easy to lose focus or get distracted by side initiatives that don’t contribute directly to your main objective. Defining your North Star helps filter out distractions and ensures your team stays focused on what truly matters. By regularly revisiting your North Star during project evaluations or strategy meetings, you can keep the team anchored, even in times of change or uncertainty.
Clarity in Goal Setting and Measurement
Sales teams live and breathe metrics—conversion rates, deal velocity, pipeline health, and more. However, without a guiding principle, it’s easy for these metrics to become disconnected from your ultimate objective. By clearly defining your North Star, you provide context for what your metrics should reflect. This not only ensures that the right KPIs are being measured but also provides clarity when setting targets. For instance, if your North Star is to become the market leader, your targets and metrics should focus on market share, brand visibility, and customer retention rather than just immediate revenue gains.
How to Define Your North Star in Sales Project Management
Defining your North Star involves deep reflection on your business priorities, market positioning, and long-term vision. Here’s a step-by-step guide to establishing a clear and effective North Star for your sales project management:
Identify Your Core Objective: Start by asking what the primary goal of your sales process is. Is it revenue growth, customer satisfaction, market expansion, or operational efficiency? The answer should be something that reflects both your company’s values and its strategic goals. Make sure this objective is clear, concise, and easily understood by everyone involved.
Understand the Big Picture: Your North Star should align with your company’s broader mission and strategic objectives. For example, if your company’s mission is to drive sustainable energy solutions, your sales process should reflect that by focusing on long-term relationships and customer education rather than just transactional sales.
Get Buy-In from Stakeholders: A North Star is only effective if everyone believes in it. Engage with key stakeholders across departments to ensure that the guiding principle resonates with their objectives and that they see the value in aligning with it. This buy-in is crucial for maintaining alignment across the organization.
Simplify and Communicate: Once you’ve identified your North Star, simplify it into a clear, memorable statement that can be easily communicated to the entire team. For example, “Maximize Customer Satisfaction” or “Drive Scalable Growth” are clear, actionable North Stars that can be communicated across all levels of the organization.
Integrate It into Processes and Training: Your North Star should be integrated into every aspect of your sales process, from training programs to performance reviews. Reiterate it during team meetings, use it as a basis for decision-making, and ensure it’s reflected in your onboarding materials for new hires. When the North Star is deeply embedded into the culture, it becomes second nature for your team to align their actions with it.
Regularly Review and Adjust: While a North Star provides stability, it’s essential to regularly assess whether it remains relevant as market conditions, customer needs, and business objectives evolve. Periodically revisit your North Star during quarterly reviews or strategic planning sessions to ensure it still reflects your long-term goals.
Implementing a North Star in the Sales Process
Now that your North Star is defined, how does it come to life in your sales process?
Lead Qualification and Segmentation: Your North Star should guide how you qualify leads and segment your market. For example, if customer satisfaction is your guiding principle, you might prioritize leads who show strong alignment with your product’s value proposition, ensuring higher satisfaction rates post-sale.
Sales Messaging and Communication: Your sales scripts, messaging, and overall communication strategies should reflect your North Star. For instance, if your focus is on market leadership, your messaging should highlight how your solutions set the industry standard, offering superior value compared to competitors.
Pipeline Management and Resource Allocation: How you manage your pipeline should be directly influenced by your North Star. For example, if your objective is revenue growth, you might focus on high-value deals and invest resources in accelerating deal closure for those accounts.
Customer Relationship Management: Post-sale interactions should also align with your North Star. If customer retention is key, ensure that your CRM activities focus on continuous engagement, upselling opportunities, and resolving issues promptly.
Sales Training and Coaching: The North Star should guide your team’s development. Align your training programs with this guiding principle to ensure that all sales reps are equipped with the skills and mindset necessary to contribute to the broader objective.
Finally, wouldn’t be a proper vacation post without a couple Pictures.
Salmon in Ketchikan Alaska. This is just some stream (Not a fish hatchery) and those fish are about three feet each.
Sunset from the balcony in Sitka Sound.
70 Degrees and Sunny in Juneau.
Harbor in Victoria, British Columbia.
What it's all about. Three of the Four waiting for bumper cars on the ship.
My wife asked for the picture…
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